Revitalisation of the site of the BEAUCHAMPS sugar factory closed in 1999

1. PRESENTATION by Mr STANISLAS WEDRYCHOWSKI Secretary General of the VERMANDOISE Group (France) CEFS – EFFAT – CIBE Conference BRUSSELS June 28th 2005 Revitalisation of the site of the BEAUCHAMPS sugar factory closed in 1999 A family-controlled private Group, quoted on the stock exchange (Chairman and Managing Director: J-C DELLOYE), producing sugar for over 100 years – 5th generation Vermandoise Group

2. Implantation Beauchamps I - The Vermandoise Group in 2005 in figures • 4 production factories • 4,000 beet-growers • 40,000 hectares • 500,000 tonnes of sugar • 400,000 hl of alcohol • Staff: • Permanent: 640 • Seasonal: 260 Vermandoise Group

3. II – Background to the closure in 1998, production by the Vermandoise Group was carried out at 5 sites ******** • A context of a declining sugar economy • Fall in world prices • New WTO constraints • The average length of the campaign for the Group’s factories was 66 days, compared to 80 days in the rest of France • The average quota (A+B) per factory in the Group was much lower than for the rest of France and Northern Europe • Handicap in terms of productivity – within the context of the future reshaping of the sugar regime ******** • The Group has found an answer to its problems by optimising its beet-growing areas through the transfer of the activities of the Beauchamps sugar factory to other sites Vermandoise Group

4. III - Implementation of the social plan Offering all employees resettlement within the Group  Preventing “desertification" of the site after its closure Personnel situation after the closure Staff leaving the factory: 93 • 10 employees retired • 58 employees relocated in the Group’s other 4 factories • 18 relocated outside the Group • 4 on disablement-sickness leave • 3 employees about whom we have no news Vermandoise Group

5. IV - Revitalisation of the local employment market • External revitalisation Thanks to the help of an external firm (SODIE) charged with canvassing businesses (SMEs) likely to create jobs, the Vermandoise Group has subsidised: 66 new jobs at five SMEs.  The Vermandoise Group has made loans at very low interest rates allowing these companies to release resources to finance the new jobs. Cost of the operation: 350,000 Euros Vermandoise Group

6. IV - Revitalisation of the local employment market (cont.) • Revitalisation carried out by ourselves This is arelational exercise with the Beauchamps town council and the regional Chambers of Commerce to attract the attention of companies interested in making use of sugar factory buildings.  Our offer : Separate buildings with full infrastructures, ready for immediate use. - low transfer price - area of buildings + land: 15 hectares Vermandoise Group

7. IV - Revitalisation of the local employment market (cont.) 5 of the 15 hectares have already been transferred to companies • Setting-up of 7 companies and creation of 35 jobs • Val service (boilermaking, maintenance): 10 jobs • Sommalev (handling and lifting equipment, transport, etc.): 6 jobs • Protois (general masonry): 5 jobs • LDGA (breakdown service): 5 jobs • Magasin de meubles (furniture store): 4 jobs • Mettelle (storage): 2 jobs • Euroteam (sanitary ware): 2 jobs • External hectares belonging to the sugar factory and transferred to the town council for the creation of a business park (20 jobs) • MOPM (press tools): 11 jobs • Saint Jacques sawmill: 5 jobs • Deme (cutting of materials): 2 jobs • Coin pneus - tyres: 2 jobs • In the pipeline: supermarket (50 jobs) on part of the site Vermandoise Group

8. Thank you for your attention Vermandoise Group